11910_AdventuresInAgritourism

INTRODUCTION

I was in the audience the day a farmer was describing a school eld trip on his farm. He told of how he reached under a hen in front of the group and pulled out an egg. A young voice rang out with a question, “Who put that there?”

e tour continued to the milking barn. As their guide squeezed a handful of milk from one of the milking cows, another question was posed, “What will they think of next?” e question would not have been quite so disturbing except it came from the teacher.

Sitting there that day, I decided to take my farm public and educate the masses.

I believe all farm dreams can succeed and all farms need agritourism. And this is why:

We all have a story to tell. We all can educate people who experience our operations. You can bring people onto your farm and teach them about your passion, whether it’s wool, tomatoes, or the natural history of your area. Even if you don’t think yourself capable, we will discuss ways to painlessly do most aspects of agritourism.

Some concepts of this book will overlap into diﬀerent areas of agritourism. As you read through these pages, I want you to think of your ideal farmstead setup. What does it look like? What are the smells that waft on the breeze and the sounds that drift from the pastures? What does it feel like to own this rstrate property?

What is Agritourism?

Agritourism has many denitions. It depends on where you are getting your information and who you ’ re talking to. When you start researching the term “agritourism,” it seems there is a diﬀerent denition for every individual operation, and this is great because it means agritourism is completely customizable to your farm. e word “agritourism” combines “agriculture” and “tourism.” Dictionaries dene it by breaking down the parts of the word. Online sources can ’ t even agree on how to spell the word: “agritourism” or “agrotourism.”

In dening agritourism, you also must ask, “To whom are you speaking?” Is it an insurance agent, lawyer, or your accountant? All could have diﬀerent denitions and opinions on the subject. You may have to change agents, lawyers, or tax professionals because they either don’t handle this type of agbusiness or can ’ t. ese individuals are key to any successful endeavor. You have to follow their guidelines to operate your business. We’ll talk more about the need for professionals in later chapters when we get down to the business of agritourism.

So we need to set our working denition for this book. Number one is spelling; yes, I am a recovering public school teacher. Agritourism = Ag + grit + tourism. Ag is for agriculture. Grit is for the tenacity it takes to be successful. Tourism is for all the people who want to see what you have to oﬀer.

After traveling the country and touring many diﬀerent types and styles of operations, my denition is simple: For me, “agritourism” means “inviting people to experience your farm dream.” Some of the operations I’ve seen charge for people to come onto the farm. Other operations make enough money growing corn or other crops or as a working cattle ranch that they don’t charge anything; some take donations. As a hybrid, a few allow special groups to come out for free while charging the masses. By this denition, you could have a 1-acre pick-your-own, a half-acre market garden, a 50-acre pumpkin patch, a hundred acres of Christmas trees, or the ability to invite people into your city home to teach them how to spin bers from locally sourced farms. For me, all of these are “agritourism” because you are sharing your agri-dream with others. I have a broad denition of “agritourism” because I’ve been practicing agritourism for more than a decade speaking on the topic, doing farm tours, and interviewing many operators. at being said, most of us dirtturners do not make enough money on our farms to break dirt for free.

e focus of this book will be on the income and prot-generating section of agritourism. Money is not a bad thing; it is a tool like a shovel, and income makes a farm sustainable.

What isn’t Agribusiness?

Whether it’s keeping a ower bed weed-free or managing a thousand-acre spread, nothing in agriculture is easy. Each size operation has its own unique ups and downs with extra labor needed the larger you get. Agritourism is no diﬀerent; it’s not always easy. If you enjoy working, then you will enjoy the work, but you will not enjoy all aspects of agritourism duties. Part of the purpose of this book is to set realistic expectations. If you enjoy a 9-to-5 work schedule, then agritourism may not be for you. Even if you have only an annual event, there will be year-round tasks that need to happen for that event to be a success. And just because your website says a certain time and date, the public will show up any time they feel like it.

Who is this book for?

Anyone with a farm dream.

What is agritourism?

People and a farm experience coming together.

Where is agritourism?

Anywhere people and agriculture can interact.

When is the time for agritourism?

Year-round 24/7/365.

Why agritourism?

To educate and foster sustainability in a fun way.

How can you be successful?

is book will guide you.

BONNIE CHAPA

Laughing Llama Farm – Troy, TX

Bonnie began her farm story while working in the real estate industry. She and her husband, Frank, moved back to her hometown of Troy, Texas, about 30 minutes away from Waco. ey had to wait an entire decade before the property they wanted became available. ey approached the owner and were able to make a deal; Bonnie says they technically traded houses. e farm owners were looking to downsize, and Bonnie and Frank were looking to upsize into a dream property.

When they acquired the property, it was not being used as a farm and things were rundown. ey had to have a place to live, so they started remodeling the house and making plans for various stages of development.

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